Training Community Health Workers

13 June 2008

MAP (2008)

The Need

MAP is working with the 'Palestinian Medical Relief Society' (PMRS) to empower women from remote and marginalised communities, particularly those who have been cut off by the wall and other forms of access restrictions.

Ever since Israel occupied the West Bank in 1967 the issue of increasing closures and access has meant that health providers have to go to the patients. The development of the 'Community Health Workers Diploma' is a local response to conditions on the ground.

The Project

The programme has criteria to select those young women who have successfully completed high school but who come from families who are unable to support their continued education.

The course lasts for two years and includes a balance of theory and practical training in the field. Key focus is placed on prevention, early detection and timely referral of patients. The local knowledge of the health workers allows for the creation of 'health zoning maps' that provide a detailed tool for health development.

The diploma therefore is essential in training health workers who not only serve but also stay in their communities. These community health workers are well trusted by their communities and are an important means of creating change, mobilization and understanding around health and social rights, practices and services.

The health workers are increasingly integrated within the Palestinian Ministry of Health and work in tandem with doctors and other medical professionals.

See health workers in a Question and Answer session here.

Partner Information

2009 will see the 30th anniversary of MAP's partner PMRS. To date, the school graduated 16 groups (269) health workers from more than 100 local communities in the West Bank & Gaza Strip. The employment rate of graduates is more than 80%.

See the co-ordinator of the Diploma - Dr Abdallah - Talk about Development issues

Support Needed

£100,000 covers the training of 25 community health workers to gain a diploma in community health over two years. This is the only accredited diploma in the Middle East. £50,000 covers the cost of training for one year. £2,000 is the cost for each student per year.

Your donation will help to ensure:

· That remote villages have access to primary health care through the services of trained community health workers from their own communities

· The empowerment of 25 disadvantaged young women who will gain skills that will stay with them for life in supporting their immediate and extended families and community

· That remote and isolated communities within the West Bank and Jerusalem district villages have at least one available community health worker to support health awareness, prevention and promotion activities.

· Having a frontline community health worker helps to ensure early detection and early intervention to improve access and quality of primary health care services.

Interview with Dr Abdallah:

"Twenty-three years ago, at the only children's hospital in the West Bank, I came to understand how our work inside communities could bring real health benefits to Palestinians in the villages, Bedouin gatherings and remotest areas.

Some time later, with the Palestinian Medical Relief Society (PMRS), we developed a new health profession, that of the Community Health Worker (CHW). Young women from local communities would be trained to look after the sick and visit homes, transferring knowledge and skills to families. They would work hand in hand with the people to improve living conditions, to support families and to promote healthier lifestyles.

I met Amnah, a CHW, at Biddu village in 1988. Today she is still working with the same enthusiasm and dedication to her community. In 1989 she and her colleagues launched the first national health campaign to tackle diarrhoea and dehydration in children. They worked from door to door, raising awareness, showing parents how to prepare and administer oral dehydration solutions from home ingredients, how to prevent diarrhoea, to recognize dehydration and to know when to seek professional help.

As director of the School of Community Health, the challenges are enormous. Living and working for 40 years under military occupation brings unique problems that demand increasingly creative solutions. By 2005 the School was reliant on external funding and our future was uncertain. Then MAP came forward to support the training of a new group of CHWs from communities isolated and affected by Israel's Separation Barrier.

The second group of MAP-supported students will start their training in October 2006, and we can now be confident that there will be more CHWs like Amnah to serve their communities. The number of local communities from which CHWs have been trained will exceed 130 in the next two years. The most vulnerable members of these communities will have access to quality health services provided by the CHWs who are among them day and night".

Dr Abdallah Abu Shararah

Director

School of Community Health

2006

Courses of Diploma in Community Health (Source: PMRS)

First Semester	Second Semester
*Name of Course*	*Name of Course*
1. Nursing Skills	Communication Skills and health education
2. Anatomy and Physiology	*Introduction to Computer
3. *English Language	First Aid
4. Primary Health Care	Introduction to Nutrition
5. Introduction to Math	Diseases and their treatment
6. Rational Use of Drugs	Practical Training 1
7. Palestinian Society and health in Palestine

Total Credit Hours 19 Total Credit Hours 17

Third Semester	Fourth Semester
*Name of Course*	*Name of Course*
1. Eye Health	Epidemiology and Communicable diseases
2.School Health	Women's Health
3.Elderly Health	Child Health
4.Dental Health	*Arabic Language
5.*Development in Arab Countries	Adolescent Health
6.Community Based Rehabilitation	Management of Health Centers
7.*Islamic Studies	Environmental Health and Occupational Health
Clinical Training 2

Total Credit Hours 19 Total Credit Hours 19
Total credit hours for the diploma in community health= 74 credit hours